For the World - Quick Pitch

Create a superhero and go to different counties and complete missions, level up your character, and change the places you go for the better! As you complete missions, spend in game money, REAL money actually goes TO the charity in the area you did the work in (or several based on the player's choice).  The players “world” they are saving (think large scale Farmville, where one farm = one country/zone in the game) would be able to be customized after they help it out so that they feel that they can help it up, and shape the world in the way they'd like. Everything in the game is public for friends to check out and see how awesome you are changing your world in comparison to theirs. Missions range from saving a cats in a tree to defending the local high school from an alien invasion you know, things super heros do all the time. I want the player to be a super hero, because playing this game literally makes them one.

So, whatever profit my Studio accumulated through advertisements/microTransactions while the player was playing at a given location in the game would be go to a real world location in real life. At certain milestones the player hits in each zone, the player would pick where she wanted the money to go. This would happen after missions, timed or if the player just wanted to give at that moment. It would also show the player how much they have given from all zones they have cleaned up.

more details:


This game is all about giving, to everyone.  People who give and people who need.  At least that's my hidden agenda in this game.  My goal for the game is to generate money that I can give to charities all around the world based on the money the player raises [for my studio] while playing.  ALSO to give players all around the world the joy you get from giving and helping.  Everyone WANTS to give, but not everyone can, this is a way to allow that to happen without asking more than to play my game.  

The game the player will actually be playing is one where you chose a super hero, get powers, fight crime, upgrade towns clean up cities and get status build in your honor.  There will be friendly competition in comparing countries between friends, challenges and updates with new missions and objectives.  Sorta like a mini-mmo.  If you have spent the most time saving a country (and by extension given the most real money to the charities in that area)  YOUR players statue will be the one displayed in all your friends games zones.  Friends can team up and fight through missions together, all themed to moving from country to country fixing up the game world.  The amount of time the player will need to spend playing the game will equate to an amount of money made by the ads etc.  This is how I'll balance the game and determine how much content each zone needs.  It would work out in a way that once the player has completed every zone in the world, they would have given money to charities around the world as well.  And if i get enough people to play the game, even a little bit from everyone will go a LONG way.  And that just feels good :D


I played Farmville like crazy for a short time, and when I stopped, someone said to me, jokingly, "So where's all that fruit you keep harvesting?" I laughed at first at their humorous way to poke fun of my game playing. All good for a chuckle or two, but there's a great idea in there. To go along with my theory that everything in life will eventually "be" a game in the future, I figured it'd be great to give people a way to have fun "wasting their time", AND do something good at the same time!  

Sure it's easy to just give to a charity when you think about it, but sadly we don't think about it that often. So, I plan on taking advantage of people enjoying a game and generating money for me so that i can give lots of money to charities, through them, and make the player feel good about the time they have spent. It's a win, win, WIN, really. (me, player, people in need) :D I mean, can you imagine if everyone who played Farmville actually got to choose where all the money Zynga made from adds, went...?

boom. change the world ;)

Get There - Quick Pitch

In this mobile game, you need to physically "get" your body (and your phone) to a location in the real world, in order to complete the challenge.

The player will see a game world in/through his phone.  It is essentially a viewfinder "into" the game world.  The player needs to walk around, climb, jump, in the real world, in order to get past the obstacles he sees in the phone.  

Level one is completed by walking forward about 5 steps until the player walks "through" the goal area seen only in the phone.  To anyone watching him, he would have just walked 5 steps forward.  Later levels will have the goal in harder to reach places in the game world, where a person might have to use real elevators, step stools, hills etc. to get their body through this virtual goal zone. 

Players will need to test out different start positions to achieve the maneuvers needed to get through the puzzles.  A reset button will be available for this.

Imagine seeing a stream in the phone that doesn't exist in the real world... Run up to it and leap across in the real world, and you've passed it! Or a set of floating platforms...

There would be levels and star ratings based on how quickly you finished it.

Players would be able to build and submit levels for other people to play as well.  And they'll be a disclaimer that we don't want you to get hurt ;)

Up Top - Quick Pitch

This landscape iPhone-ish game is a fast paced tapping puzzler about people from all around the world who are trapped underground after a cataclysmic event has taken place.   You need to boost moral and no better way to do that than high-fiving! Line up the moving characters so that they high five, and when they do, their sonic waves destroy the rubble above.  High five enough times, and they all go free! 

There will be a single player mode, and a 2 player wifi mode for this.

Main game play:
Rows of people in different colored shirts slowly walk from left to right, this does not stop.  On the right side of the screen are 3 columns of people (also in colored shirts) ready to be high fived.  If nothing is done, the left side will eventually collide with the right and if the characters colliding are NOT wearing the same colored shirt, they will not high five, and moral will get even lower!  if moral drops out completely, that level is failed.
The player will need to tap an individual, this will cause him to jump to the front of his row.  if he get's all of his rows matched up before they meet the right hand side, he can swipe to the right, and it will send all the first column running to the right and high fiving that side.  if he can set it up so that he can swipe in a row without tapping more people to the front of the line, he can get more bonuses.  the Sound waves from the high fives destroy the collapsed rubble above you.  Easier levels will only have a few rows, (1 or 2) and max out at 7.  Both this, and time difficulties will increase, like your "remaining air meter" will act as a count down timer etc.

The 2 player wifi mode is very similar, with the exception that the columns on the Right are blacked out so that the player can not see what color shirt the people waiting to high five are wearing.  AND player two has his screen reversed, so, his people walk in from the Right and move to the left.  It is up to the two players to coordinate where their characters are, who should jump to the front of what row, and so one, and then swipe their front rows toward the other player to high five :D  should be chaotic, and fun.. just like real high fives.

The Gui will show levels of row along the top, the more you high five, the more this breaks down, eventually opening up, and everyone escapes to safety.  This will be rated using stars, and there will be a world map with all the different levels you can go to to complete, and save the entire planet!

Balance the Bunny King - Quick Pitch

This side scrolling, mobile phone "runner" game is a mix between temple runner and tiny wings, to the extreme. In Balance the Bunny King, you have two servants you control to balance a pompous king you carry on a board between you two.  The Goal is to get the king to the far off castle, and avoid obstacles heading your way, from jumping over and under set pieces, jumping gaps and avoiding adoring fans throwing themselves at the king.  

The player will use his two thumbs on either side of the screen to control each of the bunny servants carrying the king.  The screen will move by itself, and so will the bunnies, but (as an example) you can slide your right thumb down and you'll speed up, and the reverse will slow you down.  both thumbs down, then up, will toss the Bunny King into the air... There will be a variety of thumb motion combination that the player will use to get himself and the bunny king to the destination.
You'll be able to jump with the king, toss him, speed up, slow down, and balance him so he doesn't roll off the board! There are power-ups you can grab along the way that will help you out.  along with mini achievements, like, carry for 500, 1,000 5,000 yards, etc.

The king will react based on the movement of the two servants, so too much motion could result in him being dropped, if he falls off too many times his adoring fans will overtake him, and the game is over.

(pardon my quick post-it doodle, but the top is a screen sample, mainly for thumb stuff, and the bottom is the most amazing 10 second zoom-in detail of all time... ENHANCE!) :D

Left Side / Right Side - Quick Pitch

Simple puzzle game for iPhone (in landscape mode), where an object appears at the top center of the screen and you swipe your finger left or right and the object flings to that side.  The game would have many different modes based on this single mechanic.  The object will fall if the player doesn't swipe one way of the other in time.  The objects move dynamically, so think, fast paces angry birds in some ways.

The game starts out with sorting the objects that appear at the top of the screen to the left and right.  if the player does not chose a left or right side, the object will fall and head toward one of the sides. Eventually, new types of objects show up, and the player will learn how to sort them so that they can keep playing the game.  It would start out with something like, just different colored blocks. get 3+ to touch, they explode and the board cascades... player learns, ok, 3+ makes them disappear.   Soon after there will be Dark colored blocks that appear in the screens left and right open areas.  these do not move.  players will learn to use the 3+ explosions to clear these blocks, as we progress, the objects change into material objects, like ice, bouncy, sticky, etc.  so they'll learn that those type need a different type of force in the fling to get them where they want to go. Eventually the player will send monsters to either side who will eat only their color block, and eventually dark colored monsters show up in static places on the left and right of the screen and the player will know to try to use the monsters to clear static dark colored monsters, and keep their board clear for more and more sorting. 

I want to teach the player the cause and affect of the objects, and then give them an opportunity to use them. They'll be challenged by the increase in reaction time to the objects as they try to keep their left and right sides clean so they can sort more objects. etc.... and i want to have these "types" of play show up randomly as the game is played, but have all the types of objects make sense with each other, so that monsters would still work on a screen filled with blocks.  This way this simple puzzle game will have lots of variety.
  

Forbidden - Quick Pitch

This game is like Demon Souls in it’s camera and focus on mood, and like 99 Nights in its potential for on screen enemies.  Its focused platform is ps3/xbox rather than iPhone.  It’s an MMORPG, but not in the traditional type like WoW, and just in a way that it’s a lot of people playing, but not a huge world.

Story:
Every night, in the middle of the ever changing forest, a blinding light can be seen. Adventurers seek this light, as it equals massive power and transformation.  However, this light isn’t as simple to obtain as one might think.  Deep within the twisting pathways of the forbidden forest lies many creatures whose goal is to stop you from obtaining this ultimate power.  If you obtain this power, you will only stay on top for a short while, as other players in the game join forces to take you down from your reign of destruction.  Dying on your journey to grab the forbidden light, or after you have transformed will send you into the darkness where by you must escape your death prison, to rejoin the living, to fight again for supremacy.

Gameplay:
During the day, players will go on quest, slay beasts, and other similar tasks much like other RPG titles.  Doing this will allow them to level up their character.  At night, once the light is seen, the forbidden forest proving grounds are open.  It is a mad dash to get to the center of the forest, and (hopefully) pass the test.  If you pass, you transform into a creature 10x the size of you, and have massive strength, destroying players who challenge you in a single blow.  However, all the players who had died trying to be in your position, and all the players in “alive” states can join up to take you down from your spot of power, in hopes to get their chance.  There are “realms” in the game.  Day time realm where you play and improve your character, and death means a respawn in the graveyard.  Deadlands realm: where you go if you die trying to obtain the light, where the only ways out are defeating another player trying to obtain the light, helping take down a transformed player, or when dawn arrives.

Mechanics:
There will be spells, and weapons, and armor all upgrade-able as you level up.  The path to the light changes every day.  From a birds eye view the paths resemble a circular maze.  If a player tries to cross over the designated pathways (i.e. touches the walls), it spawns demons of great difficulty.  If they die along the way, they are banished to the “deadlands”, where they can try to kill an "alive" player in the forest, trying to get to the center of the maze where the light is located.  If you do so, you switch spots with them, and regain your “alive” state.  

It’s essentially king of the hill type pvp, with pve elements for half of the server time (day/night)  You gain exp for everything during the day, in the specific areas you use/train (i.e. use a sword, get better at swords, chop down trees, get better at your tree chopping level)  When in obtain the light and change into Forbidden form, you gain massive amounts of experience based on your time “on top of the hill” and the enemies you destroy.  The players are also ranked based on all their times combined as king of the hill.  It is also random, which type of transformation you will change into.  It's akin to having 10 different bosses in a game, or in a dungeon and all the other players need to adapt to the boss's weakness.  Also, the player who transformed into the boss needs to get good at fighting in the different forms.  The bosses will also have stages like a main boss in WoW.

General Thoughts:
This game relies heavily on other players playing.  If not, we’ll have to use bots, and bots just aren’t as cool.  Lots of darkness, and high contrast in the forest.  very mysterious and high tension, as you don't know if another player is going to sneak up on you, if someone else might get the light and come after you... 

In the maze, the center circle is roughly 100 yards of open space, and each of the hall ways are about 20 feet wide.  so plenty of room to fight while still keeping it contained....and it won't be gray walls like in the image below, it'll be trees and brush ;)

I really want the player to have the experience of being "a boss" and having them feel what it's like to be THE game, instead of just playing it. Here are some images... the art style will not be like dark souls, (at this time)  i really want to focus more on depth and atmosphere, and that simplicity to create the artistic style of the game. (and the light would be more white, and blue/purple as it gets later in the night... this would be at dusk. when the light first starts to appear.

See... if you get to the girl, you transform and get to be that big guy... cool, right?
(images courtesy of google ;) )

Tap, Tap, Boom! - Quick Pitch

Blocks appear in the empty spaces on the screen, then increase in size and move in a straight line. They start out white, and as they grow, they turn black.  They continue to grow/move until one side touches a wall, once it touches a wall, it sticks to it, and is now considered part of the wall surface, and is now, "untap-able".  The player needs to tap these square shapes as they are growing to "stop" them. If enough blocks turn into walls that it fills the whole screen as a solid black square, the game is over.

While a block is being tapped, it will stop growing and moving, the value will also head back toward being white.  if the player stops tapping it, it will start growing and moving again, and start fading to black again.  If the block turns black, or hits a wall, it turns into a static object(and it's color snaps to black if it wasn't already.)
However, when it is tapped all the way back to full white, it will "explode".  When a block explodes, it shoots out a white box in all 4 directions that destroys the walls that it touches, which clears more screen for more blocks to appear.  The size of the pixel that explodes out of each of the 4 sides is based on the size the block has grown to.  Players may actually choose to wait til it gets bigger to tap it, so that when it explodes, it fires off larger square pixels.   Multiple blocks will start to appear, and further stages will start out with different arrangements of walls that need to be destroyed.  A player completes a level by surviving the time limit, or clearing the entire stage to it's boarders.

this tiny picture may help... it's really tiny though :D essentially showing that a white box appears, starts moving, growing in size, and getting darker.  it hits a wall in drawing 5, and then in drawing 8 the player decides to tap the cube headed for the right wall, he taps it 4 times, which gets it back to white, and that shoots out 4 white destroyer cubes, one of which cuts through the black cube that stuck in the corner, leaving only a thin sliver.  and the boxes keep appearing... etc.

 

Companion - Quick Pitch

a game about you and your friend, and letting go.  an game made to explore emotion, for things you would usually care less about... a cube.

You start out with nothing, but know that you are close to death.  Eventually you see a tiny spec in the distance, you move toward it and make your way up to it.  It’s a gray cube, not moving at all. Next to the cube is a flat blue square... water?  You touch it, and you're healthy again.  You look around and see nothing, and decide to approach the cube, but it moves away from you and appears to be slightly afraid.  After you approach it slow enough a few times, it let's you get close enough, and you pick it up, and it's color changes from gray to yellow.  and a comforting sound now comes from him.  Testing to see what else will happen, you discover that  you can set him down as well.  After you set him down, he turns and points behind you.  Turning, you see a red cube in the distance getting larger and larger. is that headed toward you and your companion?  not sure what to do, you search around, and see a large green cube in the opposite direction. seems safe...  better gotta go now, or you're dead! You start to run, but do not hear your cube anymore.  isn't he following?  better go back and grab him, or he might be toast too!  as the noise and cube get closer and closer, you may have made it to safety if you started running soon enough.  hopefully you didn't leave your friend behind... 
after all, he did lead you to water, (which saved your life)..  the red cube collides forcefully into the outside wall of your safe green zone, and it shatters into a million tiny red particles and then is gone.  and so is the green cube you were once standing in... vulnerable again, you, your new friend, and the vast nothingness around you...

 

moving forward through the game, you will come across simple yet emotional challenges in your effort to survive.  the artist style is that of global illumination and the simplest shapes possible.  the goal of the design is to achieve as close of an emotional attachment to something in it’s simplest form, through experiences shared, and memories made.  

the “companion” can morph and change shape to fit the needs of the levels the player will travel through.  although he will also have a mind of his own.
He will give a part of himself to you, and saves your life each time he does
you eventually lose him, is he gone for good...?
How about when you see a gap in the road he would have normally stretched out his body to allow you to cross?  instead you need to take the long way around...

Will you miss the things he used to do? when you pass by objects in the game he would have usually gotten excited about seeing?

Out at Sea - Quick Pitch

This game is about a guy who comes across a cruise ship in the middle of the ocean, and has no idea where he is.  it would play as a 1st person shooter.  very eerie and suspenseful.  

During one scene, the hero will come up to the boat out in the mist.   he approaches it on a small piece of debris and makes his way carefully aboard.  Through the tipped hallways some half filled with water and shifter furniture, he makes his way toward the main control room of the ship, where hopefully he can radio for help.  having not seen another survivor and only bodies missing most of their flesh, he’s not sure what’s going on, or how he got there.  as he slowly pushes the door open, he is startled when he sees an old man leaning against the controls.  The captain is starring into the vast nothingness of the ocean, and is unaware we have entered the room at all.  as he slowly approaches he notices that he looks remarkably healthy, besides the 1,000 yard stare that doesn’t seem to move.  He answers your questions in a slow monotone voice, but it’s clear he has lost his mind.  He’s holding onto a chain around his neck, that he tells you about without being prompted...  He never wanted to sail ships, but his father before him, and his father before him were, he had no choice.  This was one of his few remaining journeys and he was going to quit, and give his son the chain, so that he would always know that he should follow his own path, instead of what everyone else wanted him to do.  All the captain wanted was to be a farmer and be able to provide for his family.  As his stories continue, a ruckus is heard outside in the hallway somewhere.  You tell the captain the you need to get out of here, and he does too, is there any place to call for help?  He tells you that the main control room is up a few levels but that he’d have to take you there.  The captain, oblivious to everything around him, continues having conversations with members of the crew as if they were going about their daily tasks, unfortunately that have died.  He tells you to follow him as he walks out the door and takes out his keys that will help you get to where you need to go.  As you start walking to the control room, even though he says he knows the ship, he has to turn around, as he seems to forget his way from time to time.  He also seems to not be aware of any of the sparking electrical outlets shorting out, or the loud noise that seem to be drawing closer and closer as he takes his time opening doors.  Suddenly, a something bursts out of the wall and leaps at you, you bash it with your bare hands.  What the heck was that!?!?!  Again the captain is completely unaware of what is going on, and continues to talk to himself as he slowly guides you to the main control room, which seems like it will take an eternity to get there.  As more and more creatures attempt to kill the two of you, you must fight for your life and the life of the captain using whatever you can, if you ever want to get out alive....

this is just the story portion of a game pitch, where the main theme will revolve around taking control of the things that happen in your life and never stopping til you get it back to the way want it.

Magic Book - Quick Pitch

first thing, think of a name that isn't terrible ;)
Set up as puzzle game for combat, and RPG overworld exploration.

You are a young boy just returning from a night out in the forest, you see your town has been ransacked, and left in disarray.  But they didn't find what they were looking for did they? oh no...it's the book, in YOUR back pocket.... but it's just an empty journal... or is it?  the insignia on the cover now glows every time you trace your finger around the emblem... Now you must figure out how to use what the book is trying to show you, fix your town, and the towns the darkness is overtaking in search of you! - of course the book is empty... and as you progress it fills, with spells and the story as it magically unveils itself as you progress.  in the end, the enemy actually wanted you to make the book more powerful, so that he could take it, and use it against you! but you are able to do the same spells now, without the book, even better ones and you use that to fight off the boss at the end, and win the day!

So you need to go around from town to town and bring it back to it's original state, like dark cloud, in effort to hear the stories of the people in the town, which fill your book, and allow you to grow...  you have a page in your book for stuff you have collected, which you can later connect and build up the towns parts again.  You do this through missions and eradicating monsters from the area.  and also learn other skills that are far more difficult to execute in the book, but slowly you can master them.

You walk around on an overworld map, and closer in towns etc. like Final Fantasy 7, or Chronotrigger.  When you fight, after encountering an enemy, the screen changes into a combat layout, akin to dragon warrior.  Where the enemy is shown at the top, along with a more detailed depiction of the background.  This would be located at the top of the screen, and take up about 1/4 of it. the other 3/4 of the screen would look like an open book, filled with random icons on it, representing skills you possess. You draw a line connecting like icons and when you release, that type of attack is done to the enemy.  example.  you connect 5 fire icons, you do 5 fire damage, 10 sword icons, 10 sword damage, etc.  6 boots, you have 6 chance to escape the fight.  it would be turn based, and the player would try to attack in a way that he thought the enemy was weak or with a spell you just like the effect of ;)  Yet also in a way that could line up more of the icons on future turns.  

It would also have quests in the over world, and drop items from specific enemies, along with traditional upgrades to weapons, armor, etc. 

 amazing, right ;)

Angle Tangle - Quick Pitch

puzzle game, one continuous level, top down.

Spheres (eventually replaced with some cute character, I'm sure ;) ) randomly appear on screen, and start moving in a straight line.  If they are tapped they will explode and the points go to the score.  If while they are moving, they collide with the same colored sphere, they combine and are worth x4 the points, and double in size.   Tapped now, they will explode and the player will get the points added to their score.  This continuation of like objects colliding will add plus x4 per event.  But, if they collide with a different colored object, they explode, and you lose life.  If you lose all your life, game over.  Speed of shapes increases as they collide.

When a object hits the edges of the screen, it will bounce off of it, based on the angle.  As the player either tilts the iPhone or rotates it with their finger, only the board rotates, the spheres do not, they stay relative to “world” space, not iphone space.  This will allow the player to move the surface the objects will bounce off of, and allow them to change the direction of the spheres to try to make then collide with like colors to get higher points.

 

I think this seems fun because looking down at the phone, it would feel like the objects are not reacting to your motions, since they will not move when the phone does. however, this control may feel a bit cumbersome, and it seems like it could become a chaotic mess pretty quickly ;)